Programs

Bloomington Campus

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Environmental Science

 Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science

The Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science (B.S.E.S.) and minor in Environmental Science are degree programs offered jointly by the College of Arts and Sciences and the O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs through the Integrated Program in the Environment. The interdisciplinary B.S.E.S. program considers the environment from a scientific perspective. Students preparing for professional employment or graduate study in environmental science or in one of the traditional sciences should consider this degree.

Major requirements

1. BSES Foundations: Joint Degree Requirements
         a. Foreign Language.
  • Proficiency in a single foreign language at or above the second semester of the first year of college-level coursework.
    b. Critical Approaches. (3 cr.)
  • Any student who is a candidate for a Bachelor’s degree offered by the College of Arts and Sciences is required to complete one Critical Approaches to the Arts and Sciences (CAPP) course on the Bloomington campus. Students are encouraged to take this course in their first year or no later than the first semester of their second year. For a listing of all courses that can satisfy the CAPP requirement, please consult with your academic advisor.

2. BSES Foundations: Mathematics, Statistics, and Computation
    a. Calculus. One (1) of the following: 
        i. Calculus I. One (1) course from the Calculus I list.

  • MATH-M 211 Calculus I (4 cr.)
  • MATH-S 211 Spec CRS In Anal Geometry & Calculus 1 (4 cr.)
        ii. Brief Survey of Calculus. Two (2) courses from the Brief Survey of Calculus list.
  • MATH-M 119 Brief Survey of Calculus I (3 cr.)
  • MATH-M 120 Brief Survey of Calculus II (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 119)
    b. Statistics. One (1) course from the Statistics list.
  • EAS-G 314 Data Analytics for Earth Science (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 488 Applied Spatial Statistics (3 cr.) (P: 6 cr. of Geography or consent of instructor)
  • SPEA-K 300 Statistical Techniques (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 014 or equivalent; R: MATH-M 118)
  • STAT-K 310 Statistical Techniques (3 cr.) (P: MATH-M 119 or equivalent)
    c. Computation. One (1) course from the Computation list.
  • BUS-K 201 The Computers in Business (2-3 cr.)
  • CSCI-A 110 Introduction to Computers and Computing (3 cr.)
  • CSCI-A 321 Computing tools for Scientific Research (4 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 250  Computing in the Geospatial Sciences (3 cr.) (P: One of MATH-M 118, M 119, M 211, or equivalent, or consent of instructor)
  • SPEA-V 261 Technology in Public Affairs (3 cr.)
3. BSES Foundations: Chemistry
    a. Fundamentals of Chemistry Lecture. One (1) course from the Fundamentals of Chemistry Lecture list.
  • CHEM-C 117 Fundamentals of Chemistry and Biochemistry (3 cr.) (P: CHEM-C 101 & C 121 or CHEM-C 103, or placement test and consent of dept.)
  • CHEM-S 117 Principles of Chemistry and Biochemistry I, Honors  
    b. Fundamentals of Chemistry Lab. One (1) course from the Fundamentals of Chemistry Lab list.
  • CHEM-C 127 Fundamentals of Chemistry and Biochemistry Laboratory (2 cr.) (P or C: CHEM-C 117)
  • CHEM-S 117 Principles of Chemistry and Biochemistry I, Honors  
    c. Organic Chemistry Lecture. One (1) course from the Organic Chemistry Lecture list.
  • CHEM-C 341 Organic Chemistry I Lectures (3 cr.)
  • CHEM-R 340 Survey of Organic Chemistry (3 cr.)
  • CHEM-S 341 Organic Chemistry I Lectures, Honors (3 cr.)
    d. Chemistry Elective. One (1) course from the Chemistry Elective list.
  • CHEM-A 314 Biological and Environmental Chemical Analysis (2 cr.)
  • CHEM-C 342 Organic Chemistry II Lectures (3 cr.) (P: CHEM-C 341 or S 341)
  • CHEM-S 342 Organic Chemistry II Lectures, Honors (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 444 Methods in Analytical Geochemistry (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 464 Organic Pollutants: Environmental Chemistry and Fate (3 cr.) (R: CHEM-C 341 or R 340)
4. BSES Foundations: Physics. One (1) course from the BSES Foundations: Physics list.
  • PHYS-P 201 General Physics I (5 cr.)
  • PHYS-P 221 Physics I (5 cr.)
  • PHYS-H 221 Honors Physics I (5 cr.)
5. BSES Foundations: Biology.  
    a. Evolution and Diversity. One (1) course from the Evolution and Diversity list.
  • BIOL-E 111 Basic Biology by Examination I (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 111 Foundations of Biology: Diversity, Evolution, and Ecology (4 cr.)
    b. Biological Mechanisms. One (1) course from the Biological Mechanisms list.
  • BIOL-E 112 Basic Biology by Examination II (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 112 Foundations of Biology: Biological Mechanisms (4 cr.) (P: High school or college chemistry)

 6. BSES Foundations.

    a. Communications. One (1) course from the BSES Foundations:
  • ENG-W 231 Professional Writing Skills (3 cr.)
  • ENG-W 240 Community Service Writing (3 cr.)
  • ENG-W 270 Argumentative Writing (3 cr.)
     b. Oral Communications. One (1) of the following courses:
  • COLL-P 155 Public Oral Communication (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-V 436 Communication for Government and Nonprofit Organizations (3 cr.)

     c. An additional course to satisfy the College of Arts and Sciences Intensive Writing Requirement (see academic  advisor for approved courses).

 

7. BSES Foundations: Diversity in the United States

a. One (1) of the following courses:

  • ANTH-E 444 People and Protected Areas: Theories of Conservation (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 313 Place and Politics (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-V 424 Environmental Law, Justice, and Politics (3 cr.)
8. Environmental Science Courses.  

    a. Introductory Course. One (1) course from the Introductory Course list.

  • EAS-E 118 Sustainability: Water Resources (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 107 Physical Systems of the Environment (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 208 Environment and Society (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 272 Introduction to Environmental Science (3 cr.) (R: SPEA-E 183) 

    b. Electives. 24 credit hours from the Electives list

  • BIOL-B 300 Vascular Plants (4 cr.)
  • BIOL-B 371 Ecological Plant Physiology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 211 Molecular Biology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 307 Biodiversity (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 311 Genetics (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 318 Evolution (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 319 Genetics Laboratory (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 326 Biodiverse City (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 328 Disease Ecology and Evolution (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 350 Environmental Biology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 376 Biology of Birds (4 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 402 Ecosystem Ecology and Global Change (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 433 Tropical Biology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 472 Microbial Ecology (3 cr.
  • BIOL-L 473 Ecology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-L 474 Field and Laboratory Ecology (2 cr.)
  • BIOL-M 250 Microbiology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-M 315 Microbiology Laboratory (2 cr.)
  • BIOL-M 465 Environmental Microbiology Laboratory (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-Z 373 Entomology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-Z 374 Invertebrate Zoology (3 cr.)
  • BIOL-Z 375 Invertebrate Zoology Laboratory (2 cr.)
  • BIOL-Z 406 Vertebrate Zoology (5 cr.)
  • BIOL-Z 476 Biology of Fishes (3 cr.)
  • CHEM-A 314 Biological and Environmental Chemical Analysis (2 cr.)
  • CHEM-A 315 Chemical Measurements Laboratory (2 cr.)
  • CHEM-A 316 Bioanalytical Chemistry Laboratory (2 cr.)
  • CHEM-C 317 Equilibria and Electrochemistry (2 cr.)
  • CHEM-C 318 Spectrochemistry and Separations (2 cr.)
  • EAS-A 339 Weather Analysis and Forecasting (3 cr.)
  • EAS-A 347 Atmospheric Instrumentation (3 cr.)
  • EAS-A 364 Dynamic Meteorology I (3 cr.)
  • EAS-A 437 Advanced Meteorology and Climatology (3 cr.)
  • EAS-A 476 Climate Change Science (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 225 Earth Materials (4 cr.)
  • EAS-E 226 Earth Processes (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 227 Earth Climate and History (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 316 Mineral Resources (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 333 Sedimentary and Tectonic Processes (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 334 Principles of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy (3-4 cr.)
  • EAS-E 341 Natural History of Coral Reefs (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 351 Elements of Hydrology (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 406 Introduction to Geochemistry (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 411 Invertebrate Paleontology (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 412 Vertebrate Paleontology (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 415 Principles of Geomorphology (3-4 cr.)
  • EAS-E 423 Methods in Applied Geophysics (3-4 cr.)
  • EAS-E 435 Glacial and Quarternary Geology (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 444 Methods in Analytical Geochemistry (3 cr.)
  • EAS-E 451 Principles of Hydrogeology (2-4 cr.)
  • EAS-X 420 Regional Geology Field Trip (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 304 Physical Climatology (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 307 Biogeography: The Distribution of Life (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 336 Environmental Remote Sensing (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 338 Geographic Information Science (3 cr.) or SPEA-E 418 Vector-based GIS (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 341 Ecological Restoration: Science and Politics (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 350 Field Methods in Physical Geography (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 405 Ecological Climatology (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 436 Advanced Remote Sensing: Digital Image Processing (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 438 Advanced Geographic Information Science (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 439 GIS and Environmental Analysis (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 444 Climate Change Impacts (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 451 Water Resources (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 452 Tree Ring Science (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 488 Applied Spatial Statistics (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 489 Advanced Geospatial Data Analysis (3 cr.)
  • PHYS-P 310 Environmental Physics (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 260 Introduction to Water Resources (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 332 Introduction to Applied Ecology (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 355 Introduction to Limnology ((3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 375 Techniques in Environmental Science (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 400 Topics in Environmental Studies (1-3 cr.) (approved topics only; see academic advisor)
  • SPEA-E 402 Water Quality Modeling (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 410 Introduction to Environmental Toxicology (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 417 Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 426 Applied Math for Environmental Science (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 429 Application of GIS (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 431 Water Supply and Wastewater Treatment (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 440 Wetlands Ecology and Management (4 cr.) (P: SPEA-E 272)
  • SPEA-E 442 Habitat Analysis—Terrestrial (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 443 Habitat Analysis—Aquatic (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 444 Hazardous Materials (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 450 Soil Science and Management (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 451 Air Pollution and Control (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 455 Limnology (4 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 456 Lake and Watershed Management (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 457 Introduction to Conservation Biology (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 460 Fisheries and Wildlife Management (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 461 Fisheries and Wildlife Management Laboratory (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 464 Organic Pollutants: Environmental Chemistry and Fate (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 470 Elements of Fluid Mechanics (3 cr.)

Up to six (6) credit hours (combined total) of any of the following:

  • BIOL-X 490 Individual Study (1-12 cr.)
  • EAS-X 498 Undergraduate Research in Geology (1-6 cr.)
  • GEOG-X 490 Undergraduate Readings and Research in Geography (1-3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 490 Directed Research in Environmental Science (1-4 cr.)

*Courses used to satisfy the Foundations requirements cannot be used to satisfy any other degree requirement.


9. Field Experience*.
    a. Single-Course Option. One (1) course from the Single-Course Option list.

  • EAS-X 329 Field Environmental Science (5-6 cr.)
  • EAS-X 479 Geology, Hydrology and Geochemistry in the Rocky Mountains (6 cr.)
    b. Two-Course Option. Two (2) courses from the Two-Course Option list.
  • EAS-X 420 Regional Geology Field Trip (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 350 Field Methods in Physical Geography (3 cr.)
  • GEOG-G 452 Tree-Ring Service (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 375 Techniques of Environmental Science (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 400 (approved topics only; see academic advisor) (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 422 Urban Forest Management (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 440 Wetlands Ecology and Management (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 442 Habitat Analysis - Terrestrial (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 443 Habitat Analysis - Aquatic (3 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 455 Limnology (4 cr.)
  • SPEA-E 482 (approved topics only; see academic advisor)
*Courses used to satisfy the Field Experience requirement cannot be used to satisfy any other degree requirement. A "field experience" course includes student-conducted environmental data collection in the field, as well as analysis of that data and a presentation of it (paper, oral or poster). Courses with these characteristics that are not listed here may be approved by the BSES Program Director.

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